Nov 24, 2011

Vietnam - Social networks race for new revenue sources



Local social network providers are seeking a way out of the profit problem so as to survive the harsh competition with foreign social networks like Facebook, LinkedIn, Cyworld or MySpace in the local internet content market.

The social network site Zing Me said it is investing in e-commerce service to create more advantages. A social commerce project has been deployed to facilitate individual and organisational users working in the field of distribution and retail sale to develop customer bases.

VNG Company, owner of Zing Me, is currently providing an open platform for users to form online shops. As of now, there have been 23 shops operating on Zing Me.

Vuong Quang Khai, deputy general director of VNG, said the site will apply online shopping services to help shop owners trade their products directly with customers.

The company will also establish an e-payment channel Zing Pay to replace money transfer via banks and post offices.

The social network applications are generating huge revenue to Zing Me. VNG last year earned some 30 billion dong from the 20 applications on the social network site, and expected the figures would surge to 60 billion dong and 60 applications by the year's end.

Meanwhile, PA Vietnam Co. earlier this month introduced the social network site Bang.vn to help its users make money by exchanging points.

Users will be awarded Bang points when accessing the social network to watch advertisements, share images and music or give comments on entries, said director Huynh Viet Phuong of PA Vietnam. These Bang points can be used for buying banners, promoting products or posting advertisement and recruitment.

PA Vietnam's method to attract users by online advertisement offers a new opportunity to make more profit for local social network providers.

However, for the Vietnam social networks to survive and compete in the market, the decisive factor should be the content, which must be developed by the whole community, said Joe Nguyen, vice president of ComScore Southeast Asia.

Saigon Times



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